American Portrait

From the highest levels of politics people are unabashedly using the language of hate and dehumanization for the self serving, immoral means of accumulating power for power’s sake. The Southern Poverty Law Center reported over 900 hate based incidents in the first 10 days after 45’s election. When ideas gain power, it validates them in many people’s minds, no matter how vile they are. These incidents sadly are not only happening somewhere across the country or in the “inner cities”. We are seeing the struggles for equality, justice and accountability become more intensified, more strained and incredibly urgent, right here in Humboldt County.

These struggles are real, intense and at times overwhelming. But what renews my passion, my determination and gives me hope, is seeing people living out the “beloved community”. It’s people showing up for the immigrant march, students self organizing to reinstate renee, a community to demand justice for the racist murder of Josiah Lawson. It’s people doing the hard work at creating new organizations, reforming and contributing to existing organizations, people taking their opportunities to speak to their representatives, run for office, writing, taking on the structures that confine our imaginations, it’s people becoming a community of angelic trouble makers. We are in the process of creating the American portrait.